Cesar Vargas, the Co-director of the Dream Action Coalition calls for re-write

Cesar Vargas, the Co-director of the Dream Action Coalition calls for re-write

Following the recent media craze surrounding the alleged “harassment of a Native American elder” by Catholic school children at the Lincoln Memorial Friday, a key Latino leader has called for the Pledge of Allegiance be rewritten to honor immigrants, not the flag.

Cesar Vargas, the Co-director of the Dream Action Coalition - a website that advocates immigration policies, claimed the recent reports about MAGA hat wearing students from Covington Catholic High School are one the reasons the pledge should be replaced.

“White teenagers are harassing a native American elder or chanting ‘build the wall’ at Mexican immigrants are not isolated incidents," he wrote in an editorial.

"Incorporating ‘our indigenous and immigrant heritage’ is our pledge that we will proactively counter the danger that racism breeds."

LAyer called for Pledge of Allegiance be rewritten to honor immigrants following the recent 'harassment of a Native American elder'

The rewritten versions should read:

"I pledge allegiance and love to our indigenous and immigrant heritage, rooted in the United States of America, to our civil rights for which we strive, one voice, one nation, for equality and justice for all."

"I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

Vargas went on to say that the pledge of allegiance has a history of racism, according to a report from The Hill.

According to the Washington Times: Mr. Vargas took issue with the original authorship by Francis Bellamy, who Mr. Vargas said was motivated by a desire to define “true Americanism” amid a wave of immigrants from southern and eastern Europe.

Cesar Vargas became New York State's first openly undocumented lawyer in 2016

“At worst, the pledge’s disturbing history excludes countless communities, including my own family. At best, reciting the pledge has become a perfunctory exercise of rote memorization,” he wrote.

“Our pledge of allegiance should be rooted in optimism, not stem from the fear of a white native-born Protestant culture. It is time to upgrade our pledge so we can truly recite words that live up to a nation that takes pride in our immigrant heritage and equality of all Americans.”

An article from Vice seemingly praising Vargas as New York State's first openly undocumented lawyer was published in 2016.

This year, Cesar Vargas became New York State's first openly undocumented lawyer.

After a four-year fight in the courts, a five-judge panel found "no rational basis" for prohibiting Vargas from practicing law based on his immigration status alone, defying a federal rule that bans states from issuing professional licenses to "aliens" unless they make specific legislative exceptions.

A Brooklyn native since age 5, when he crossed into the US with his family from Mexico, Vargas didn't wait around on the court's decision:

He has traveled all over the US organizing for immigration reform, and his group, the Dream Action Coalition, has confronted politicians on both sides of the aisle.

He also joined the Bernie Sanders campaign as a national Latino outreach coordinator during the primaries.

Last year, we reported that a charter school in Atlanta decided to replace the "offensive" Pledge of Allegiance with "a more inclusive" new "Oath to Global Society."